Friday, May 9, 2025
5/9/2025
Tribal Diabetes Program through Cherokee Indian Hospital Authority. - Western North Carolina, North Georgia, Eastern Tennessee, most of South Carolina and parts of Virginia and West Virginia have been the homeland of the Cherokee people for many centuries. The Museum of the Cherokee Indians links Cherokee ancestry back as many as 10,000 years. The Eastern Band of the Cherokee (EBCI) members are direct descendants of the Cherokee Nation and the Oconaluftee Cherokee of 1817 and 1819. The Oconaluftee Cherokee include those who avoided the Cherokees' forced removal to Oklahoma in the 1830's "Trail of Tears”, as well as, those that returned after the removal. EBCI was duly incorporated in 1889 under a corporate charter and this was the beginning of EBCI’s recognition as a sovereign nation. Enrollment today is approximately 16,000 enrolled members and at this time EBCI is the only Federally recognized tribe in North Carolina. Approximately 12,000 AI/ANs are considered active users of the Tribal Health System referred to as the Cherokee Indian Hospital Authority. With the encroachment of white settlers in 1500, and many other circumstances not of the Cherokee’s choosing, the people had to change their way of life. 20,000 members of the tribe walked the Trail of Tears to Oklahoma. Of those left behind, some were placed in boarding schools and no longer had their traditional foods available. They were stripped of their identity and made to be more like their white counterparts. Others were left to fend for themselves in an ever changing environment. Over time and pressures from the outside world, the Cherokee adapted into a modern way of life. This has brought on a change in the people that has left the traditional ways in the background. Today, the Cherokee enjoy all the conveniences of the modern way of life. They no longer have to hunt for their meat or plant and tend gardens for their produce. They no longer have to physically work for their food and way of life. This fact and historical stressors have brought changes to the general health of the tribe. Cherokee men and women are twice as likely to be obese as members of other racial and ethnic groups in North Carolina. The prevalence rate of type 2 diabetes among Cherokee men and women combined is 20%. This rate is more than three times the combined rate for men and women from all other racial and ethnic groups in North Carolina. The Cherokee Diabetes Program works to ease the burden of diabetes on the tribe and its members. We provide a comprehensive approach to the treatment and prevention of diabetes through relationship based care. EBCI has identified diabetes as a priority for the tribe. Special Diabetes Program for Indians (SDPI) provides a means for addressing this priority through partnerships within the community and surrounding counties, use of evidence based best practices and working with targeted groups for improvement efforts. SDPI staff work with patients on varied activities to promote glycemic control such as education, group meetings around support or weight loss, scheduling time with the exercise specialist, and filling pill boxes. We are also using care management activities to address Social Determinants of Health to remove barriers to care. The SDPI funding is essential to providing our services to the community and to the diabetic patients within the tribe. The funds are essential prevention efforts for the tribal communities and for comprehensive care the diabetic patients of Cherokee. So therefore, we request acceptance of our application and to receive our full funding for the coming years of this application.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).